Mushroom season

 October marks the height of the mushroom season, and this year has been a particularly good year, even if the season is later than usual - presumably a knock on effect of the late wet Spring.

On Sunday 16th October, just over a year since their last visit on September 20th 2015, (see blog post) the Runnymede Ramblers made a return visit for a fungi walk. The foray was led by Dick Alder of the West Weald Fungus Recording Group. The star find of the day was the Purple Webcap  - Cortinarius Violaceus - a rare mushroom which has apparently never previously been found in West Sussex. The nearest known colonies are in the New Forest. In addition to the ones pictured in the previous post, we found a further specimen on the banks of the pond, and the group found another pair in the neighbouring wood. A sample has been sent to Kew, where it will be part of a project on DNA sequencing on the Cortinarius family.

Dick Alder's full list of Sunday's finds is shown at the end of this post and has been shared with the Sussex Biological Records office.

In addition to that list, over the past few days we have also found:

Black bulgar or Batchelor's Buttons - Bulgaria Inquinans

BB growing on dead oakwood

Aleuria arantia

List of fungi finds made 16th October Old Copse:

SCIENTIFIC	ENGLISH
Amanita citrina	False Death Cap
Amanita citrina var. alba	False Death Cap, white
Amanita excelsa var. spissa	Grey Spotted Amanita
Amanita muscaria	Fly Agaric
Amanita rubescens	Blusher
Amanita porphyria	Grey Veiled Amanita
Boletus badius	Bay Bolete
Boletus edulis	Cep
Cantharellus tubaeformis	Trumpet Chanterelle
Clitopilus prunulus	Miller
Coprinopsis atramentaria	Common Inkcap
Cortinarius violaceus	Violet Webcap
Daedaleopsis confragosa	Blushing Bracket
Entoloma nitidum	a Pinkgill
Gomphidius roseus	Rosy Spike
Gymnopilus junonius	Spectacular Rustgill
Gymnopilus penetrans	Common Rustgill
Hydnum repandum	Wood Hedgehog
Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca	False Chantarelle
Hypholoma fasciculare	Sulphur Tuft
Laccaria amethystina	Amethyst Deceiver
Lactarius blennius	Beech Milkcap
Lactarius chrysorrheus	Yellowdrop Milkcap
Lactarius deliciosus	Saffron Milkcap
Lactarius hepaticus	Liver Milkcap
Lactarius rufus	Rufous Milkcap
Lactarius tabidus	Birch Milkcap
Leccinum scabrum	Brown Birch Bolete
Leccinum variicolor	Mottled Bolete
Naucoria escharioides	Ochre Aldercap
Paxillus involutus	Brown Rollrim
Piptoporus betulinus	Birch Polypore
Russula atropurpurea	Purple Brittlegill
Russula claroflava	Yellow Swamp Brittlegill
Russula densifolia	Crowded Brittlegill
Russula nigricans	Blackening Brittlegill
Russula nitida	Purple Swamp Brittlegill
Russula nobilis	Beechwood Sickener
Russula ochroleuca	Ochre Brittlegill
Russula sardonia	Primrose Brittlegill
Scleroderma citrinum	Common Earthball
Suillus bovinus	Bovine Bolete